1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clamping apparatus, and more particularly, to a clamping apparatus of an optical disk drive.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, optical disk apparatuses configured to be disk recording/reproducing apparatuses have been develop continuously. In general, an optical disk drive for driving an optical disk has become an indispensable tool for recording and regenerating the data in a personal computer (represented as computer hereafter), and can be built in the main body of the computer or externally connected to the main body of the computer by a cable. Generally speaking, an optical disk may be loaded in or ejected out from an optical disk drive manually or automatically.
Taking the optical disk ejected out automatically by a tray for example, the processes thereof are generally performed as described below.
When the disk is going to be ejected, the spindle assembly is driven to be moved away from the tray of the optical disk drive, such that the disk can be separated from the spindle assembly and stay on the tray through the force caused by the disk contacting the tray. Afterward, the disk is ejected out of the optical disk drive by the tray. However, the operation often causes the disk unable to stay on the tray stably under certain conditions. The main reason is that the disk is fixed to the spindle assembly of the optical disk drive by clamping method through the clip of the locking unit. Nevertheless, during such process of the disk separated from the spindle assembly described above, the locking unit retracts along a radial direction due to the axial force between the spindle assembly and the tray applied on the locking unit. However, at the time that the locking unit moves till the disk is separated from the spindle assembly, the disk still bears the axial force and causes the bounce effect. Even though the disk is still restricted within the inner space of the optical disk drive, the disk is unable to fall on the tray stably due to the bounce, that is to say, the disk and the tray are tilted to each other. When the tray is ejected from the optical disk drive, the tilted disk may stick with other inner components of the optical disk drive, so that the tray is unable to be ejected successfully which causes inconvenience for the user.